Gwangju: The host South Korea advanced to the finals in the men's team and mixed team recurve events at the World Archery Championships on Tuesday. South Korea, though, won't be able to accomplish its goal of sweeping all five recurve titles in the southwestern city of Gwangju, as its women's team fell in the semifinals.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the men's trio of Kim Woo-jin, Lee Woo-seok, and Kim Je-deok knocked off Turkey 6-2 in the round of 16 and then France 5-4 in the quarterfinals, before squeezing past Japan 5-4 in the semifinals at Gwangju International Archery Center on the first day of the recurve competition. In recurve team events, each archer takes two arrows per set, for a total of six arrows and a maximum score of 60 points per set for each team. Teams earn two points for a set win and one point for a tie. The goal is to reach five points first.
South Korea and Japan were tied at 4-4 after four sets, and they needed a shoot-off to determine the winner, with each team member shooting one arrow. All three South Koreans hit 10s for a perfect 30, while Japan finished with 28. South Korea will face the United States team of Trenton Cowles, Brady Ellison, and Christian Stoddard in Wednesday's final. Kim Woo-jin, Kim Je-deok, and Lee also combined for the men's team gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Later Tuesday, Kim Woo-jin advanced to the mixed team final with An San. In mixed team matches, each archer takes two arrows per set for four arrows and a maximum score of 40 points for each team. A set win is worth two points, and teams each get one point for a tie. The first team to five points is the winner. An and Kim defeated the Czech Republic 5-3 in the round of 16 and then the U.S. 6-0 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, An and Kim traded a point apiece with the German duo of Katharina Bauer and Moritz Wieser in each of the first three sets, before winning the fourth set 40-36 to claim the match 5-3.
In Wednesday's final, South Korea will face the Spanish team of Elia Canales and Andres Temino Mediel. The South Korean women's team of An, Lim Si-hyeon, and Kang Chae-young lost to Chinese Taipei 5-4 in the semifinals. These two countries needed a shoot-off after being tied at 4-4 after four sets, and Chinese Taipei beat South Korea 28-27. South Korea will try to salvage a bronze medal against India on Wednesday.
South Korea looked poised for the recurve gold medal sweep earlier Tuesday, when it grabbed the top seeds in all disciplines in the qualification rounds while setting two world records-in the mixed team and the women's team events. Kim Woo-jin won the men's individual qualification round with 701 points, with Lee (681 points) and Kim Je-deok (680 points), finishing seventh and 11th, respectively.
The men's individual elimination round begins Wednesday, and matches from the round of 16 and beyond will be held Thursday. An came out on top in the women's qualification round with 692 points, and her two teammates, Lim (689) and Kang (689), finished third and fourth. The women's individual elimination round starts Thursday, followed by medal matches Friday, the last day of the competition. All medal matches will take place at the May 18 Democracy Plaza in Gwangju.
Earlier in the championships, South Korea grabbed one medal in compound, with Choi Yong-hee winning bronze in the men's individual event Monday.